Compare And Contrast Latin American And French Revolutionists

The main social basis for both Latin America and France at the time was a social pyramid that determined class. Both regions had an upper class that were against the revolutions and lower classes who supported it. From the perspective of the upperclassmen, (Peninsulares for Latin America and the 1st and 2nd Estate for France) the old social system of classes was perfect because it benefitted them and gave them advantages and liberties over the other classes. The next class down consisted of Creoles; American-born Spaniard, and the Bourgeoisie; wealthy and educated citizens without nobility. Although these citizens had the same education, wealth, and sophistication as the higher classes, they were not given equal privileges or rights due to

First, both groups viewed the absolute monarchy as the boundary that was limiting their freedoms. They believed that with a republic and a new government lower class citizens can finally achieve natural rights (an Enlightenment idea proposed by John Locke), and other freedoms such as universal suffrage. As other revolts such as the American Revolution were able to declare their independence, these countries began to fight against the government and the upper class. Both regions were mostly successful in temporarily gaining these freedoms, in part because of the strong leaders supporting the cause. In France, Robespierre was the main leader who helped unify the Third Estate and help them overthrow the monarchy. Similar leaders arose in Latin America including Miguel Hidalgo of Mexico, Toussaint L'ouverture of Haiti, Pedro I of Brazil, and Simon Bolivar “The Liberator” who helped free many colonized countries of Latin America including Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador. The most similar of the group may have been Bolivar and Robespierre, both of which were powerful revolutionists who helped unify the lower classes in effort to use their power to overthrow the standing monarchy. Also, the success of both leaders led them to a time where they used their power for violence. Robespierre began to act as a dictator, executing nobles and people against his cause. Bolivar used a very similar

In both France and Central/South America, almost all labor and taxes came from the lower classes while upper classes still had many more rights and privileges without doing much work to provide for the economy. This caused discontent among the low status citizens and gave these citizens yet another reason to rebel and fight for freedom. In France, the Third Estate provided for 98% percent of the country’s labor and paid nearly all of the taxes. Even with carrying this burden on their shoulders, the the Third Estate still received a small portion of the country’s income. These small wages along with France’s poor economy and the nationwide famine streaking through France at the time, the peasants were almost forced to revolt. They were unable to afford food and necessities to live with the way the social system was influencing their economic value. In Latin America, the lower classes were also given little even though they provided a lot to the nations. Due to processes including mercantilism, the Encomienda system, and slave trade with Africa, all people in these New World countries/colonies under the Creole status on the social pyramid, worked hard labor, usually on farms, and received little to no pay. One example of this is in the Encomienda system, a program set up by Spain that allowed them to recruit Native